Student Speaker's Reaction to Denial of His Arrest by Khamenei's Session

Mohammad Javad Motamedi Nejad, one of the speakers at Ayatollah Khamenei's recent meeting with students, reacted to the denial of his arrest news by calling the head of Tehran's judiciary 'false and irresponsible.' Mr. Motamedi Nejad, who introduces himself as the 'Secretary of the Justice-Seeking Student Movement' on his Twitter account, was arrested two days after the meeting with the Supreme Leader at a transportation terminal in Tehran and was later released on bail. However, after media reports emerged about the arrest of a student who had spoken critically of the judiciary at the Supreme Leader's meeting, the head of Tehran's judiciary denied the news, stating: 'The arrest of the student activist is not true.' In response to this judicial official's statement, this student activist on Friday, June 11, accused the head of the judiciary of lying in a series of tweets and even published a copy of his bail. Mohammad Javad Motamedi Nejad explained in these tweets that he went to the transportation terminal 'to hear the drivers' talks and examine their demands' and was arrested following the detention of a labor activist. According to this student activist, he was arrested on charges of 'disturbing public order and comfort' and was later released on a bail of 50 million tomans. He is one of several students who spoke at the meeting with the Supreme Leader last Tuesday, with at least two of them voicing criticism of the country's situation and ongoing 'crises.' Ayatollah Ali Khamenei hosted a group of students on Tuesday, June 7, some of whom were given the unusual opportunity to express their criticisms of the government and system from the podium. Among these, the remarks and criticisms of Sahar Mehrabi, a representative of responsible managers in the Central Council overseeing university publications at the Ministry of Science, received significant media attention. However, Mr. Motamedi Nejad also mentioned topics he raised in the presence of Iran's leader on his Twitter account. Based on these tweets, his speech primarily criticized 'unjust practices' in the judiciary, 'injustice' in the country, and some 'insider currents.' He stated in part of his speech: 'The head of the judiciary has long promised to publish the names and images of corrupt judges, but there has been no news yet... Lack of transparency has allowed the corrupt to feel secure instead of the oppressed, and public trust in the judiciary has been undermined.' It seems that 'corrupt judges' refers to the case of 'the judges' corruption ring in the judiciary,' which is among the issues that the Justice-Seeking Student Movement has confronted this judiciary and its head, Ayatollah Amoli Larijani. The head of the judiciary has also been one of the main targets of the sharp criticisms from Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the former president, over the past year. The Justice-Seeking Student Movement, of which Mr. Motamedi Nejad is the secretary, is a supporter of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.